Plug Pulled on Man in Space

Russia's space agency announced that the International Space Station -- a space base the world's scientists and billions of U.S. tax dollars helped build and maintain some 200 miles above the surface of the Earth -- will be de-orbited and allowed to sink into the Pacific Ocean in 2020, just like its Russian predecessor, Mir.

"We will be forced to sink the ISS. We cannot leave it in orbit as it is a very complicated and a heavy object," Roscosmos' deputy head Vitaly Davydov said in an interview posted on the agency's website.

"We have agreed with our partners that the ISS would function roughly until 2020," he noted.

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How. Damn. Sad.

Batteries No Longer Included

China Blocks Export of Crucial Minerals to Japan as Dispute Escalates
Begun, the Batteries Wars, Has.

Sharply raising the stakes in a dispute over Japan's detention of a Chinese fishing trawler captain, the Chinese government has placed a trade embargo on all exports to Japan of a crucial category of minerals used in products like hybrid cars, iPads, wind turbines and... guided missiles.

Chinese customs officials are halting all shipments to Japan of so-called rare earth elements, industry experts said on Thursday morning.

SO - What're you going to do about it Japan?! Yeah, you?! Without your fancy batteries? Huh?
What? You're going to mine asteroids and the Moon?! Isn't that a bit drastic? In a 500 foot battle robot suit?

(Go on, Japan, I triple dog dare you - can't be any more expensive than fighting in Afghanistan!)

Hawking Says F-It, Physics Rule!

In a surprising move, Physicist and Simpsons guest star Stephen Hawking has just done something remarkable - he just gave the finger to the world's religions without moving a muscle.

He came out and said that physics alone can explain the Big Bang. The law of gravity is enough to explain the universe. No god or gods were necessary in 'designing it' or 'flipping the switch.'

In his latest book, The Grand Design, [see, he's selling a book] an extract of which is published in Eureka magazine in The Times, Hawking said: “Because there is a law such as gravity, the Universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the Universe exists, why we exist.”

He added: “It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the Universe going.”

In A Brief History of Time, Prof Hawking's most famous work, he did not dismiss the possibility that God had a hand in the creation of the world... so this is a bit of a reversal. Or he's less afraid of fatwa's now that he's 68?

This is just as silly as his recent statement about hostile aliens, which was, "Shut Up! Quit broadcasting! That show V could totally actually happen, man!"

I think Hawking should stick to physics.

Star Gazer Fades Out

`Star Gazer' host Jack Horkheimer has died

Jack Horkheimer, longtime host of public television’s Star Gazer and executive director of the Miami Space Transit Planetarium, passed away today of a respiratory ailment at age 72.

From the Miami Museum of Science’s announcement:

Jack was executive director of [the] Planetarium for over 35 years and was an internationally recognized pioneer in popularizing naked-eye astronomy. He was also a recognized media celebrity, often being the foremost commentator on all astronomy related happenings nationwide.

Aurora over North America

Taken from the ISS... the Aurora over Aurora Illinois.

Happy 20th Birthday Hubble Telescope

Sunday Comics: Week in Review

And that was the week. Hope you had fun? See you next week.

The Week In Review/Sunday Comics

This isn't news. Stop looking at it, maybe it'll go away. Everyone is sorry that they got caught.

Dirty Cheater Olympics.
Mrs. Obama is tackling the obesity problem. Part of that 'freedom' take-away they're instituting. Free to be a fat ass. The best part is, the cost of food has fallen, but the price of medical care is skyrocketing? Correlating evidence? You bet.



Epic Beard Man took on some dude on a bus. Seth MacFarlane Responds to Sarah Palin's Attacks after having a down syndrome character on Family Guy.

Meanwhile, the Marines are taking Afghanistan, one mile at a time - (no one seems to have noticed) and the CIA is striking the Taliban senior leadership one #2 at a time. (no one seems to have noticed this either).

There's a Blaspheme's Convention, and I've disappointed the host by not attending. I can give excuses and real reasons why I was unable to attend, but no matter what I say - it's nothing more than a lousy excuse.

So instead I'll complain that humanity isn't reaching for the stars anymore.

Saturday Morning Cartoons

A cooperative effort of Starbase Command, Airwang, and the Astro Marines, Starcom is the premier peacekeeping force in the growing planetary community. Our heroes are an ensemble of the best and the brightest, led by Colonels John Derringer, John Griffin and Paul Corbin- better known as Dash, Slim and Crowbar- who make full use of their ultra-sophisticated vehicles and state-of-the-art technology. The main obstacle to this peaceful endeavor is the sinister, mysterious Emperor Dark. Assisted by his Shadow Force, an army of powerful vehicles, evil warriors, and Robot Drones, his ultimate plan is to rule the solar system in the mad belief that everyone would benefit from his dictatorship.


[If you can't see it, or want a better version, here's the link]

Starcom
Episode 1: The Long Fall
The new defense satellite aides the StarCom vehicles in repulsing an attack by General Vondar, Unfortunately it malfunctions and fires on its own men. Crowbar goes against regulations and shuts down the system for repairs.

Space Toilet

Cut'npaste from Tribune.

What hit Jupiter?

NASA says something did.
• Astronauts fix toilet

Awesome. Glad to see that toilet is fixed.

Hand of God

NASA has published a new high energy x-ray photo of dying stars that look identical to a hand reaching throughout space...

Which made me think of an earlier photo of the hand of God.

Eh, don't stand around like you've never seen the Hand of God before. Get back to work.